JUSTIN THRILLS TO DEFY ODDS
FOLLOWING one 67 with another would have been very impressive under any circumstances at a course as difficult as Southern Hills. Doing so from the wrong side of the draw at the 104th US PGA Championship added up to 36 holes filled with intent from Justin Thomas.
It allowed the American to claim the early second-round lead and sneak ahead of his great friend Rory McIlroy before the Northern Irishman, who opened with a pace-setting 65, teed off yesterday afternoon.
Thomas won this title in 2017 and delivered a show that made such light work of his misfortune, as to suggest he will take some stopping over the weekend.
So good was the 29-year-old from Kentucky that he finished three strokes clear of anyone else in his wave of the draw. Another who impressively fought the elements was England’s Matt Fitzpatrick, who followed up his opening round of 68 with a 69 to be the next best and continue his fine run of form.
Among the unfortunates in the wrong half were the world’s top three, who all struggled in the more difficult afternoon conditions on Thursday when the wind picked up.
They must have thought to themselves that they would have the chance to make up ground on Friday morning, with the greens fresh and the wind becalmed.
Except it did not work out like that, not even close. When Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm and Collin Morikawa returned, they found the wind pumping and the greens not mown, to try to prevent golf balls moving and causing a suspension of play. To complete the picture, the wind was foretwo-over. cast to die down for later starters such as McIlroy. Never underestimate the importance that such fortune plays in the destiny of a major. Going out early on Thursday and late yesterday had to be worth two shots, at least, although the leading trio made it appear a lot more than that.
Scheffler was knocked completely from his usually elegant stride as the Masters champion came home in an ugly 40 to miss the halfway cut on six-over.
Open champion Morikawa put together a sequence of 21 holes without a birdie at one point, almost comically bad for a man who hits his approaches as close as he does.
He finished on four over, leaving US Open champion Rahm an underwhelming best of the trio on
“I stayed very
patient in my own little world”
By way of stark contrast, such trying circumstances seem to bring out the best in Thomas, who delivers when his back is up against the wall.
‘I’m obviously very pleased,’ he said, following his six-under-par total. ‘I played solid in the first round but this was really good. The conditions were clearly very difficult but I stayed patient in my own little world and tried to execute each shot as best I could.’
Thomas rose to world No1 in the aftermath of his PGA victory five years ago, but has taken a back seat of late as the likes of Scheffler and Morikawa have risen to the fore. He did not muster a top-20 finish in the four majors last year.
He had a good answer when someone suggested he might have been putting too much pressure on himself. ‘You know, it’s a hard sport and sometimes you just have to roll with the punches,’ he said.
So far, on a course that has historically favoured the man leading after 36 holes, he has shown plenty of the attributes he will need to clinch a second major, flighting the ball expertly in a second round that featured four birdies with just one blemish.
One of those gains came on his final hole, and you could see what it meant as his birdie putt from 20ft dropped. He will start the weekend with momentum and will relish battling McIlroy, whom he beat in a fabulous singles match at the 2018 Ryder Cup that went to the final hole.
It was no surprise to see Fitzpatrick doing well. His steady progress this season has been the shining light when it comes to England’s leading golfers. While his contemporaries have largely stalled or gone backwards, the 27-year-old has compiled an impressive body of work over the past few months. In nine tournaments, he has finished in the top 20 on seven occasions, including a runner-up placing in his last appearance as he seeks a first win in America. His world ranking has improved from 24th to 17th, taking him past Tyrrell Hatton and Paul Casey to become England’s No 1.
Over two rounds here, he has shown exactly why he deserves such status. There have always been questions as to whether he hits it far enough in the land of the big bombers, but he has picked up 20 yards without losing any accuracy. Around the greens he has drawn plenty of quizzical looks by deciding to chip with an unusual left-hand-below-right grip, but is making it work.
Add those improvements to his excellent iron play and peerless putting stroke and no wonder he is picking up healthy cheques virtually every week.
Hopefully, this proves the weekend where he gets to experience what it is like to have the chance to win a major. He has shown with his seven victories on the DP World Tour that he knows how to win.
As for his English compatriot Tommy Fleetwood, playing in the group ahead, he showed his wellknown liking for difficult conditions with a fine level-par round of 70 and a total of one-over.